SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Sets New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

SM Energy (NYSE:SM)’s share price hit a new 52-week low on Friday . The company traded as low as $35.68 and last traded at $35.51, with a volume of 359995 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $37.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on SM. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on SM Energy from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $53.00 target price (up previously from $51.00) on shares of SM Energy in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on SM Energy from $57.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of SM Energy from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of SM Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, SM Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.90.

SM Energy Stock Down 7.4 %

The company has a market cap of $3.93 billion, a PE ratio of 5.15 and a beta of 4.11. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 3.52.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The energy company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $852.22 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $849.44 million. SM Energy had a return on equity of 19.82% and a net margin of 28.63%. Research analysts anticipate that SM Energy will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.98%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SM. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,853 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $114,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in SM Energy by 35.2% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 63,535 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $2,539,000 after acquiring an additional 16,535 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in SM Energy by 3,434.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,025 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 996 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in SM Energy by 7.0% in the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,843 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $234,000 after acquiring an additional 380 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 3,897.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,439 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 1,403 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

About SM Energy

SM Energy Company, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of oil, gas, and natural gas liquids in the state of Texas. It has working interests in oil and gas producing wells in the Midland Basin and South Texas. The company was formerly known as St.